Many golfers ride a cart when playing golf. Managers of golf courses prefer that there be two people in one cart and two carts in one group. In golf course management, time is money because revenues are based on the number of golfers that will fit into the tee time slots. A group of golfers typically tee off every 10 minutes or so, and finish in approximately four hours. Courses have starters making sure golfers start on time. They may also have rangers to monitor the golfers and to make sure there are no delays in the procession of players across the entire course. The management can maximize revenues if they can fill these tee time slots and have players finish on time. Slow play has been the bane of cart playing golfers since the surge in golf's popularity.
Motorized cart golf has become a slower game. This is because two golfers are joined together by onegolf cart, making it difficult to move independently from one another. Unfortunately, the majority of golfers don't strike the ball down the middle of the fairway all the time. This would make riding in one cart more practical. Instead, the ball is often struck away from the center of the fairway. As a result, cart golfers tend to drive a zigzag pattern from one side of the fairway to the other chasing each other's shot.
Sometimes, conscientious golfers realize that they can “break away” from their playing partner by grabbing a collection of clubs needed to advance the ball to the hole. This speeds up the pace of golf. When a golfer walks independently from the cart, by necessity, the golfer often has to carry more than one club. If a golfer's intention is to finish the hole in this manner, at the minimum the golfer often has to carry at least two clubs, the putter and one other to advance the ball. It is not uncommon to see golfers carrying many clubs. Each shot requires a different club, depending upon which part of the fairway the golfer decides to play. This creates the added burden to the golfer who may have to carry four or more clubs.
There are at least two more situations concerning the transport of golf clubs away from the golf cart. First, a common occurrence after heavy rains or delicate course conditions is restriction of all motorized golf carts to travel only on the cart paths, often referred to as, the Cart Paths Only. In this instance, a method of transporting several clubs from the cart path to the golf ball would be helpful. The golfer can only assume the conditions surrounding the next shot, because the ball is some distance away. Factors such as lie, wind direction, angle to the green, or hazards are often apparent only after arriving to the ball. A prudent golfer would prefer to bring at least two clubs. Again, an issue here is transport, as well as the concern over laying a club down on wet ground, resulting in wet and/or dirty grips.
Another scenario in which one or more clubs need to be transported away from the cart is pitching and chipping. Golf course rules often restrict the presence of golf carts proximate to the greens. For example, golf carts may not be allowed within 50 yards of the green. If the golf ball is clearly resting on the putting green, the putter may be the only club which needs to be pulled from the bag. On the other hand, if the approach shot did not land on the green, the lie, its direction, and relationship to the hole, usually are not clear until the golfer is standing directly over the ball. In addition, it may not be clear how the golfer wants the ball to fly and land on the putting surface, for example, high and soft, low and fast, stop as it lands, or continue rolling towards the hole. The golfer may prefer to choose between several clubs after determining the desired shot selection.
One of golf's foremost experts on the short game, Dave Pelz, had this to say about scoring: “In golf, how you play inside of 100 yards is the prime determinant of how you score.” This is the first sentence of the first chapter in his book, Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible. After 23 years of researching the game, studying golfers, and compiling data, Pelz results show that 60% to 65% of all shots occur inside of 100 yards. Pelz recommends that golfers carry a putter and four wedges within one hundred yards of the green. The four wedges include a pitching wedge, a sand wedge, a lob wedge, and an extra lofted wedge. Pelz's goes on to say that if you could develop three types of swings, a full, ¾, and ½ speed swing using the aforementioned clubs, a golfer could have 12 reliable shots from within 100 yards, 4 clubs×3 swings=12. Once a golfer can execute these shots and become more educated, a golfer can significantly improve scoring ability and enjoy the game more. The obstacle facing most golfers attempting to utilize this proven method is that the golfer must have these clubs in hand, carried loosely, around the green until the hole is finished. This is a difficult task and often results in wet dirty grips from having to lay the clubs on the ground or perhaps even lost clubs.
Accordingly, there is a need for a means for transporting one or more golf clubs away from a golf cart. The subject application relates to an apparatus for carrying a plurality of golf clubs and/or golf related items. In a specific embodiment, the subject invention relates to a collapsible golf bag which has a means for connecting to another standard golf bag. The subject invention can allow a golfer to “break away” from their golf cart by allowing the golfer to easily carry one or more clubs needed to advance the ball to the hole. The golf bag of the subject invention can be collapsed to a size for easy carrying or storage. When ready for use, the collapsible golf bag of the subject invention can be expanded to allow the golfer to carry a plurality of clubs to the ball and allow the golfer to complete the shot with the correct club. The subject golf bag can prevent the golfer from having to carry numerous clubs in hand and reduce the risk of leaving clubs on the green. When not in use the collapsible golf bag, for example, can remain attached to, or stored in, the standard golf bag. In this way, the subject golf bag will not impede regular is ready for use when needed. The use of the subject golf bag can speed up the pace of a golf game, reduce the occurrence of lost clubs, and reduce the occurrence of club grips getting wet or dirty when laid on the green.